“In 10 years of ruling China, Xi Jinping has expunged political rivals, replacing them with allies. He has wiped out civil society, giving citizens no recourse for help but his government. He has muzzled dissent, saturating public conversation with propaganda about his greatness,” the New York Times reports.

“Now, having secured a precedent-defying third term, Mr. Xi is poised to push his vision of a swaggering, nationalist China even further, with himself at the center.”

Ed Luce: “Imagine that a superpower declared war on a great power and nobody noticed. Joe Biden this month launched a full-blown economic war on China — all but committing the US to stopping its rise — and for the most part, Americans did not react.”

“To be sure, there is Russia’s war on Ukraine and inflation at home to preoccupy attention. But history is likely to record Biden’s move as the moment when US-China rivalry came out of the closet. America is now pledged to do everything short of fighting an actual war to stop China’s rise.”

“It is not clear that corporate America, or its foreign counterparts, have fully digested what is about to hit them.”

“An unwritten pact binding the U.S. and Saudi Arabia has survived 15 presidents and seven kings through an Arab oil embargo, two Persian Gulf wars and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Now, it is fracturing under two leaders who don’t like or trust each other,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s 37-year-old day-to-day ruler, mocks President Biden in private, making fun of the 79-year-old’s gaffes and questioning his mental acuity, according to people inside the Saudi government. He has told advisers he hasn’t been impressed with Mr. Biden since his days as vice president, and much preferred former President Donald Trump.”

Rishi Sunak was confirmed as new prime minister after Penny Mordaunt dropped out of the race, The Guardian reports.

“A Brazilian politician attacked federal police officers seeking to arrest him in his home on Sunday, prompting an hours-long siege that caused alarm and a scramble for a response at the highest level of government,” the AP reports.

“Roberto Jefferson, a former lawmaker and an ally of President Jair Bolsonaro, fired a rifle at police and threw grenades, wounding two officers in the rural municipality Comendador Levy Gasparian, in Rio de Janeiro state. He said in a video message sent to supporters on WhatsApp that he refused to surrender, though by early evening he was in custody.”

“Boris Johnson will not stand in the Conservative leadership race, leaving Rishi Sunak very likely to enter No 10,” The Guardian reports.

Johnson claimed that he did have the required support but had decided not to run as “this would simply not be the right thing to do” as “you can’t govern effectively unless you have a united party in Parliament.”

Nick Eardley: “This is a huge development. I’ve been on the phone tonight to Boris Johnson backers and they were convinced he’d stand.”

New York Times: “The flotilla of Russian superyachts in Turkish waters is raising tensions with the United States, which sees Turkey’s welcoming of the vessels as a symptom of the much larger problem: Russia’s access to Turkey’s financial system, potentially undermining Western sanctions.”

“In all, at least 32 yachts tied to oligarchs and sanctioned entities have sheltered in the country’s waters in recent months, able to move about or moor in its picturesque coves and bays without fear of seizure, according to a New York Times analysis. Ownership records of superyachts for the ultrawealthy are notorious for being hidden behind layers of shell companies.”

Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) branded Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) the leader of the “pro-Putin” wing of the GOP after the House minority leader suggested cutting U.S. funding of Ukraine’s war effort, Politico reports.

Said Cheney: “The idea that the party is now no longer going to support the Ukrainian people. For somebody who has the picture of Ronald Reagan on his wall in his office in the Capitol, the notion that now Kevin McCarthy is going to make himself the leader of the pro-Putin wing of my party is just a stunning thing.”

She added: “It’s dangerous. He knows better. But the fact that he’s willing to go down the path of suggesting that America will no longer stand for freedom, I think tells you he’s willing to sacrifice everything for his own political gain.”

The Atlantic: “Because the Chinese Communist Party is among the world’s most secretive political organizations, China watchers jump on any new piece of information that might imply something about the country’s direction. Today, we were given an unexpected detail. In the middle of today’s session of the 20th Communist Party Congress, former General Secretary Hu Jintao was abruptly escorted off stage. Hu initially appeared to resist being moved, and two men pulled him up rather gruffly. China’s current leader, Xi Jinping, was sitting next to him and did not look surprised. The two exchanged some brief words before Hu’s exit.”

“Social media were soon abuzz with rumors based on little more than the body language in the video. In China, the public can discern very little about how senior leaders interact with each other, where they stand on policies, and how the decisions that matter are actually made. Outside observers have no clue—and likely never will—what really happened to Hu in that moment.”

Former UK chancellor Rishi Sunak is poised to formally enter the race to become Britain’s next prime minister after securing public backing from the 100 Tory MPs needed to enter the ballot, the Financial Times reports.

By 7pm on Saturday Boris Johnson, who has only just returned to Britain from a holiday in the Dominican Republic, had around 50 publicly declared backers.

The Guardian says Sunak has the support of 126 Tory MPs.

Times of London: Tory right spurns Boris Johnson as support for Rishi Sunak surges.

“For months, Western diplomats and foreign policy experts have worried that Europe’s support for Ukraine might falter as winter arrives and fuel shortages leave people freezing in their homes,” the Los Angeles Times reports.

“But as Republicans’ polling numbers improve ahead of next month’s midterm elections, even the United States’ continued assistance for the embattled Ukrainians is suddenly in doubt.”

Washington Post: J.D. Vance faces backlash in Ukrainian community over war stance.

“President Xi Jinping, China’s most powerful leader in decades, increased his dominance Sunday when he was named to another term as head of the ruling Communist Party in a break with tradition and promoted allies who support his vision of tighter control over society and the struggling economy,” the AP reports.

“Xi, who took power in 2012, was awarded a third five-year term as general secretary, discarding a custom under which his predecessor left after 10 years. The 69-year-old leader is expected by some to try to stay in power for life.”

“The party also named a seven-member Standing Committee, its inner circle of power, dominated by Xi allies after Premier Li Keqiang, the No. 2 leader and an advocate of market-style reform and private enterprise, was dropped from the leadership Saturday. That was despite Li being a year younger than the party’s informal retirement age of 68.”

Axios: “With Xi as China’s unchallenged leader for another five-year term, Beijing is likely to continue its current trajectory of confrontation with the West.”

“China’s former top leader, Hu Jintao, was unexpectedly led out of Saturday’s closing ceremony of the Communist Party Congress, in a moment of drama during what is typically a highly choreographed event,” CNN reports.

“Hu, 79, was seated in a prominent position at the front table in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, directly next to his successor, current leader Xi Jinping, when he was approached by a staff member, video of the meeting shows.”

“Hu then appeared to rise after being lifted up by the staff member, who’d taken the former leader by the arm, while Kong Shaoxun, head of the party’s secretariat came over. Hu spoke with the two men briefly and initially appeared reluctant to leave.”

Foreign Policy: What the hell just happened to Hu Jintao?

“Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson landed back in Britain on Saturday morning, ahead of a possible tilt at reclaiming his former job,” the AP reports.

“Johnson was ousted by a series of ethics scandals just three months ago, but boarded a flight back to London from his vacation in the Dominican Republic, days after the dramatic resignation of his successor, Liz Truss.”

“Johnson has not officially said he is running but some allies in the parliamentary party have been loudly calling for his return. Tory lawmakers wishing to enter the race must secure the backing of 100 of their colleagues by 2 p.m. on Monday.”

Politico: Boris Johnson vs Rishi Sunak: The mother of all leadership battles.

“Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell appeared to break from his House counterpart on Friday, calling on the Biden administration to expedite military aid to Ukraine and vowing that Senate Republicans will work to ensure ‘timely delivery of needed weapons,'” Politico reports.

“McConnell’s remarks come after House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy suggested a GOP-controlled House might slow or halt aid to the besieged U.S. ally, citing domestic challenges like the economy and the U.S.-Mexico border.“

Edward Luce: “The idea that Conservative members of parliament will agree on a ‘unity candidate’ to replace Liz Truss by the end of next week is thus miracle talk.”

“There are lots of volunteers queueing up for decapitation at the Downing Street guillotine. Whoever is next to be voted on to the tumbril will have one advantage over their predecessors, of which this latest would be the fifth in six years; they would begin in the expectation of failure. It is always good to start on low expectations but in this case they are likely to be borne out.”

“The new British prime minister, Liz Truss, has laid out a terrific supply-side economic growth plan which looks a lot like the basic thrust of Kevin McCarthy’s Commitment to America plan.”

— Former Trump economic adviser Larry Kudlow, on Fox Business on September 23, 2022.